Freezer Hoisin Chicken, Ginger, & Red Peppers

This Make-Ahead Freezer Hoisin Chicken with Red Peppers, Carrots, Onions, Ginger, and Soy sauce is absolutely delicious and so easy to make. You get sweet and savory all in one dish and it’s perfect for families with kids because it’s sweet, not spicy at all. All ingredients go into a freezer bag, you thaw the night before, and then cook on a sheet pan…so EASY! Of course, you don’t have to freeze this, you can just make it, but let’s face it, we could all use some meals ready for us on those insanely, crazy, busy nights!

When I talk to other Moms about cooking dinner, the biggest concern is that they get home and don’t know what to make so they either make the same things over and over or order food. I have heard time and time again that they would love to learn more about EASY prepping ahead by making freezer meals that can be quickly cooked with no fuss. Therefore, this is the first in a new series of Make Ahead Freezer Meals. This fist one is a delicious Hoisin Chicken with Ginger, Red Peppers, and Carrots. The only thing you need to do is make rice to go along, but that can be made ahead and frozen too! YES, I KID YOU NOT! IT CAN BE THIS EASY!!!

Let’s talk Hoisin

You can certainly make your own and there are a variety of recipes for that. However, since we are talking freezer recipes and that means EASY DINNERS, you can buy it right in the Asian section of your grocery store. It’s essentially a sweet, thick glaze or sauce ususally made with sweet potato starch, soy bean paste, soy sauce, chili peppers, and sesame oil or paste. It’s not hot at all, but it is very sweet, so a little goes a long way. I absolutely love to have it on hand for stir fry, for dipping dumplings into, and for adding to other sauces. You can really use it to glaze just about any protein or vegetable. But I just love this Hoisin Chicken combo!

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Cut chicken breasts into small bite-size pieces. I like to use cooking scissors for this step as it’s so easy. You can easily get 4 portions out of a pound of chicken breasts or 2 8oz breasts. Once cut, add it to your freezer bag.

ECO-UPDATE:

I recently received an email from a wonderful woman with a wonderful recommendation for a more Eco-Friendly and Leak-Proof alternative to freezer bags. I LOVE this idea and I really love Pyrex Glass Containers for all of my storage, whether it’s in the fridge or freezer, and even for cooking in the oven or warming in the microwave. For this recipe, I recommend: Pyrex (6017397) Simply Store 7-Cup Round Glass Food Storage Dish

Next come the onions or shallots, either will work. I had shallots on hand, but you can use 1 large yellow onion or 2 large shallots. Dice the onion and add to the bag with the chicken.

Next prepare the carrots and red peppers. Just a note here, if you’re not a Red Pepper fan, you can really add a variety of different vegetables that you like in this dish, as long as they can hold up in the freezer. Zucchini for example will not do well, but celery, bok choy, cauliflower, or broccoli all will work!

Last comes the Minced Ginger, Soy Sauce, Hoisin, and Low or No Sodium Chicken Broth. There is salt in the Hoisin and the Soy, so you don’t want to add even more with the broth. For the ginger, I find the easiest way to peel it is to scrape the skin off with a spoon. I tend to do this in large batches, mince the ginger in a mini food processor, and then freeze it until I need it.

Add the Ginger, Soy sauce, and Hoisin to the bag. Seal the bag and then using your hands, mix the ingredients together. Then flatten out the bag and place flat in the freezer. Pressing it flat is important as you can easily stack these frozen meals upright vertically once frozen for easy access. This can keep up to 3 months in the freezer.

COOK YOUR HOISIN CHICKEN FREEZER MEAL

Make rice according to package directions. NOTE: you can make the rice ahead and freeze it too! Just be sure you freeze it in its own separate bag.

Thaw your frozen Hoisin Chicken bag in the fridge overnight or during the day for cooking that evening. Do not thaw out of the fridge at room temperature, as this invites bacteria!

Drizzle or spray the sheet pan with Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I love my Sonica Organics Oil Sprayer for this because it is non-aerosol (no toxins and propellants), uses the olive oil I already have, and is so easy to pump, then spray.

Add the entire bag to an oiled Sheet Pan. Then spread it out evenly on the sheet pan. Cook for 30 minutes in a 400 F Degree oven.

Freezer Hoisin Chicken, Ginger, Red Peppers, and Carrots

This Freezer Hoisin Chicken with Red Peppers, Carrots, Onions, Ginger, and Soy sauce is absolutely delicious and so easy to make. You get sweet and savory all in one dish and it's perfect for families with kids because it's sweet, not spicy at all. All ingredients go into a freezer bag, you thaw the night before, and then cook on a sheet pan...so EASY!

Instructions

Make Freezer Bag

Cut chicken breasts into small bite-size pieces. I like to use cooking scissors for this step as its so easy.

Add the chicken to the bag.

Dice the onion or shallots and add to the bag.

Peel and Slice the carrots. Slice the Red Peppers and then cut the slices in half so they are more bite-size. Add both to the bag.

Peel and mince ginger. I find it easiest to peel the ginger by scraping it off with a spoon. If you try to cut it off, you will end up cutting off some of the wonderful ginger too. Mince with a knife or make a bunch to freeze some for later and mince it in a mini food processor.

I like to add the 3 tbls Soy Sauce to the ginger just to make it easier to pour into the bag. Add the ginger and Soy sauce to the bag.

The final 2 ingredients to add to the bag are the Hoisin Sauce and Chicken Broth. Make sure the Chicken Broth is low or no Sodium as the Hoisin and Soy are salty. Seal the bag and then mix all ingredients together with hands.

Place flat in freezer. Pressing it flat is important as you can easily stack these frozen meals upright vertically once frozen for easy access. This can keep up to 3 months in the freezer.

Cook your Frozen Hoisin Chicken Meal!

Thaw your frozen Hoisin Chicken bag in the fridge overnight or during the day for cooking that evening. Do not thaw out of the fridge at room temperature.

When ready to cook, preheat oven to 400 F degrees.

Make rice according to package directions. NOTE: you can make the rice ahead and freeze it too! Just be sure you freeze it in its own separate bag.

Add the entire bag to an oiled Sheet Pan.

Spread the chicken, peppers, carrots, and onions around evenly over the sheet pan.

Cook the Hoisin Chicken pan in the oven for 30 minutes.

Serve over rice and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

This Frozen Hoisin Chicken Meal can last up to 3 months in the freezer, so label it with the date.

First, you don't have to freeze this! You can make it right away, but it freezes so well and it's wonderful to have these meals ready on crazy nights.

If you are not a Red Pepper fan, you can really add any vegetables that you like in this dish, as long as they can hold up in the freezer. Zucchini for example will not do well, but celery, bok choy, cauliflower, or broccoli all will work!

You can make the rice ahead and freeze it in a separate bag. When you thaw it, you may need to steam it a little when warming it up to moisten it and steam out the moisture.